Withers KhattarWong LLP, the Singapore office of international law firm Withers, has boosted its Technology and Intellectual Property (IP) capabilities in Singapore with the hire of partner Jonathan Kok. Jonathan joins Withers from RHTLaw Taylor Wessing, where he was the Head of its Intellectual Property & Technology Practice. He will be joined by his team which includes Joyce Lee (Senior Associate) and Eileen Ng (Patent Associate).
The hire of Jonathan and his team provides strong leadership and growth for Withers tech in Asia. Withers tech is a comprehensive legal offering designed to meet the unique needs of tech entrepreneurs, investors and high-growth technology companies across different industries globally. The team works with a number of major clients in Asia, including Grab, PCCW, In3Bio, Entrepreneur First and Infocus Asia.
As a senior Technology and IP transactions lawyer, Jonathan has over two decades of experience advising clients on the registration, protection and commercialisation of their IP and technology assets for business growth and expansion. He also advises on the data protection and cross-border transfer of data for clients. He represents clients across high-growth technology sectors, including life sciences; technology, media and entertainment; and education. He is one of the early practitioners in Singapore to focus his practice on technology sectors and has assisted many start-ups from early-stage to maturing into an established presence in the Asian region.
Beyond being one of the few lawyers in Singapore with expertise in digital media and entertainment law, Jonathan works closely with the Action Community for Entrepreneurship, the private sector-led organisation that drives entrepreneurship and innovation in Singapore, to support tech start-ups and is actively involved in SGTech, the premier trade association for the tech industry in Singapore. He is also listed in Chambers, The Legal 500, Asialaw Leading Lawyers, WTR 1000 and Who’s Who Legal for his expertise in IP, franchise, telecoms, media and technology.
James Shaw, head of the Withers tech team, comments: "Jonathan's hire is a really important step in the strategic growth of Withers tech in SE Asia. In a fragmented legal sector, this demonstrates our commitment to the ecosystem and support for clients and Jonathan is exactly the right person to drive forward our activities in the region. SE Asia is positioning itself as a leading source of disruption in the global tech market and we see clients with a real hunger for focused expert advice on key specialist areas with global reach, such as data privacy, SaaS, life sciences and direct investment in innovative technology assets."
Jonathan adds: "Withers is building a really strong international offering for technology and new media entrepreneurs and their businesses. The firm's sectoral focuses on technology, sports, brands, food and beverage and education are also highly synergistic with my practice. I am very excited about playing a pivotal role in building an advice hub for the region that can offer technology clients a full range of transactional, IP and personal legal advice."
